Rotary brush having cleaning fluid applying means



my 3L 95@ H. P. CHN-TUM 2,756,446

ROTARY BRUSH HAVING CLEANING FLUID APPLYING MEANS Filed Dec. 4, 1953 United States Patent O ROTARY BRUSH HAVING CLEANING FLUID APPLYING MEANS Herman P. Chittum, Roanoke, Va.

Application December 4, 1953, Serial No. 396,179

2 Claims. (Cl. 15-'29) This invention relates to improvements in rotary washing brushes driven by remote motor means through a fiexible drive shaft.

There are at present in use many types of rotary brushes and generally they are mounted on motors directly. Such rotary brushes are cumbersome to hold and wield, and when used with washing fluids are often dangerously capable of transmitting electric current to the holder and user. Some rotary brushes have a supply of washing liquid fed to the brush by a pump on the motor, others depend upon gravity feed from a supply located adjacent to or placed overhead of the work. Still others use steam under pressure to supply both the fluid for cleaning and the motive power for the brush. The present invention is an improvement over all such rotary brushes, and is of light weight, and avoids any possibility of electric shock to the user.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a rotary washing brush driven by a motor remote from the brush and from the vicinity of the surface being washed and from the inevitable splashing of washing uid thereat.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a rotary brush having a manipulating handle which is also a conduit for connection to a supply of washing uid.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a rotary brush driven by a flexible shaft and connected to the washing fluid supply by a flexible conduit, so that the brush is easily handled and applied to brick and other walls with a minimum of effort.

The invention consists of a brush rotatably mounted on a spindle or arbor which is, in turn, connected to the end of a exible shaft of such length as to assure maneuverability. The handle of the brush is hollow and connected to the washing fluid supply, the spindle or arbor being drilled for a portion of its length to constitute a passage for the fluid to the brush.

The many advantages and other objects of the invention will be more fully apparent upon consideration of the following description when taken in connection with the annexed drawings, in which:

Figure l is a schematic view in elevation of a rotary brush of the present invention, shown applied to a brick wall, and

Figure 2 is an enlarged axial section of the brush head.

Referring in more particular to the drawing, the illustrated device comprises a motor having a shaft connected to one end of a flexible shaft 11, to the other end of which is secured a brush head generally designated 12.

The brush head 12, as shown in detail in Figure 2, comprises a plurality of brush sections 13 arranged in circumferentially spaced relation, of which two are shown in side elevation and a portion of a third in end elevation. Although four such brush sections are used in this embodiment of the invention, a greater or lesser number may be used. The ends of the brush sections 13 are spaced from each other and provide an opening. The bristles of the brush sections may be stili or soft in any combination desired. The brush sections 13 are bolted to a backing plate 2,756,445 Patented July 31, 1956 iCC 14. An arbor 15 traverses and is secured to the plate 14 for rotation therewith, the plate being circumposed on the arbor 15 between washers 16 threaded on the threaded forward end 15 of the arbor. The threaded forward end 15 of the arbor 15 projects into the space between the inner ends of the brush sections 13, and a nozzle 17 is threaded thereon. The nozzle has orices 18, one directed to each brush section, so as to wet the bristles rather than a wall being cleaned.

The arbor 15 has a threaded rear end 16', and has a smooth portion 17 between the forward end 15 and the posed on the smooth portion 17 and which has a threaded opening 28 in one side into which a nipple 22 is secured. The arbor 15 has a bore 23 which extends inwardly from its forward end 15 and terminates at a point spaced from its rear end 16 and is in communication with the nozzle 17. The arbor 15 is also provided with an opening 25 which extends through its side adjacent the rear end of the bore 23 and is in communication with the bore 23, the opening 25 forming a passage from the nipple 22 to the bore 23 through which a supply of Washing uid under pressure is introduced from the exible hose or conduit 27, the conduit having one end secured to the nipple 22 as shown in Figure l, with the other end connected to a supply source, not shown. The rear end 16' of the arbor 15 is provided with a threaded socket 26 into which the forward end of the exible shaft 11 is threadedly fixed. The sleeve 21 and the nipple 22 constitute a relatively stationary handle for holding and manipulating the brush head 12.

ln operation, it will be seen that the washing uid will flow through the nipple 22 into the bore 23 of the spindle 15 in intermittent spurts, due to the fact that the opening 25 registers with the nipple 22 only once during each rotation of the arbor 15, and gives a spurting action to the fluid as it emerges from orifices 18 to impinge on the brush sections 13 for the purpose of cleaning the surface designated 36, Figure l, and to rinse the brush sections of dirt received from such surface during cleaning.

lt is believed apparent that the invention is not necessarily confined to the specic use or uses thereof described above, since it may be utilized for any purpose to Which it may be suited. Nor is the invention to be necessarily limited to the specic construction described and illustrated, since such construction is only intended to be illustrative of the principles of operation and the means presently devised to carry out those principles, it being considered that the inventor compreliends any minor changes in construction that may be permitted Within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. ln a rotary brush, an arbor having a threaded forward end and a threaded rear end, and a smooth portion between said ends, said arbor having therein a longitudinal bore opening through its forward end and terminating in a closed rear end spaced from the rear end of the arbor, said arbor having a side opening near the rear end said bore, a sleeve rotatably engaged on said smooth portion, bushings threaded on said threaded forward and rear ends of the arbor and engaging the related ends of said sleeve, said sleeve having a side opening registrable with the side opening of the arbor, a nipple securably engaged in the sleeve side opening, said nipple and said sleeve constituting a relatively stationary handle for holding and manipulating the brush, and said nipple being arranged for connection to a source of Huid under pressure, a nozzle threaded on the forward end of the arbor, a backing plate circumposed on the forward end of the arbor between said nozzle and the adjacent bushing, means se- 3 curing the bacling plate onthe arbor for rotationther'ewith', ysaid balinigpite 'having Va "ffii-'ward side, brnsh -siections secured to the forward side of the backing plate, and connecting. means on the rear endof the arbor for Iconnec'tihgthe arbortorotaryrdrivingmeans.- a In arot'ary brush, an iarbrhaving a threaded -forward ri'd and a't'hreaded Vrear end, and a smoothportion between said ends, said arbor having therein a longitudinaI lbore Vopening throiigh its forward end and terminating in a closed vreareid spaced fromv the rear end of the arbor, said arbor lhaving a side opening near the rear end of Psid bore, `a sleeve srotatably engaged*- onfsraidsmooth portion, bushings threaded on said threaded'forfwardand rear ends ofi the Varbor yand engaging the Arelated,'erwlsuof said' si'eveQsaid'sieevefhaving a sideopening registrable with side opening yofthe arbor, a nipple secur'ably er1-` ggd "in the islv'e rsd'e oening, saidrlnipple vand sjaid sleeve cns'tititing'arelatively `stationary handle; for holding nd'nian ating the brash, and "said nipple beingarranged fr lconiction'to a source of-duid underpressire,

a notizie' on -forward AendV of--thea1'bn3` a plate circnrnpos'ed on the forward lendfof the arbor 'between said nozzle yand Ithe adjacent bushing,-

meansfsecuring thebaclging platevonthe arbor for rotation therewith, said backing plate having a forward side, brush sections secured to the forward side of the backing plate, and connecting means on the rear end of the arbor for connecting the arbor to rotary driving means, said driving means comprising a exible motor driven shaft and said connecting means=conneting an end of the exible shaft directly to the rear end of the arbor.

References :itii' the v:file-'dfithis patent 

